3 Ways to Maintain Well-Being Throughout the Creative & Collaborative Process
Jezz Chung / Contributing Writer
Question from the community: As we’re entering new phases of the pandemic and reopening conversations about mental health and burnout, what are some ways we can keep our well-being in mind throughout the creative collaboration and production process?
We’re experiencing a massive shift in the ways we think about labor. What are we giving? At what cost? How can we make this exchange more humane, more equitable, more sustainable? When the pandemic hit, most of us lost the distinction between our personal and professional lives— we were working from our bedrooms, moving through grief and the stress of one cultural crisis after another, all while putting on the performance of a “good employee” by smiling and nodding through meetings as if the world wasn’t on fire. And let’s be honest— if we work in the ecosystem of advertising, marketing, design, and tech, the distinction between work life and personal life was already slim to none.
An excerpt from this NPR article about The Great Resignation summarizes why we’re seeing more and more people choose to exit full-time employment, following a period of intense self-reflection brought on by the pandemic.
“As pandemic life recedes in the U.S., people are leaving their jobs in search of more money, more flexibility, and more happiness. Many are rethinking what work means to them, how they are valued, and how they spend their time. It's leading to a dramatic increase in resignations — a record 4 million people quit their jobs in April alone, according to the Labor Department.”
This BBC piece mentions another important reminder: people are not machines. We’re reaching a tipping point, realizing we can’t keep moving at the pace we’ve been moving.
The racial re-awakening during the summer of 2020 also led to a racial burnout. Especially for people of non-dominant identities, the cultural conversations around systemic racism validated the frustrations many of us have had to swallow for the illusion of inclusion. Advocating for your safety in an unsafe system is emotionally exhausting.
What does this mean for our well-being? First, we shouldn’t have to push past our limits for the sake of fitting in! Most likely, something that isn’t working for us isn’t working for others either. Second, it’s okay to have different needs. We all live vastly different lifestyles, and emotional well-being is often tied to the equity we have. For anyone who is neurodivergent, disabled, or experiences personality and mood disorders, there are also added layers of feeling ashamed and guilty for not being able to show up in the same ways as others.
Who has the equity to go on lavishly restful vacations, to return to work recharged? Who has the equity to pay for experimental forms of therapy, to build a mental health team that supports them through burnout and breakdowns? Who has the equity within an organization to speak honestly about their capacity and not be punished for it?
I thought about these questions often while working at an advertising agency, before I resigned and began working for myself.
“Who has the equity to go on lavishly restful vacations, to return to work recharged?... Who has the equity within an organization to speak honestly about their capacity and not be punished for it? I thought about these questions often while working at an advertising agency, before I resigned and began working for myself.”
I didn’t fully have the language for this at the time because I didn’t have access to it, but I realize so much of why I would experience regular burnout was because I couldn’t move at the same pace as others. Because I’m neurodivergent, my capacity for connection, space, and support fluctuates often and without feeling psychologically safe, I’m not emotionally well enough to show up for my work. And I think this is true for many.
When thinking about the relationship between mental health, labor, and work, I think it helps to check in with our capacity. We say yes because we feel pressured to, but what if we could infuse more honesty (as terrifying as that is!) when someone asks something of us we can’t deliver? Are there patterns you notice that lead to burnout? If you feel particularly drained at the end of the week, what were some factors that contributed to the exhaustion?
While working a full-time job, Wednesdays often became burnout days for me. I’d wake up exhausted from Monday and Tuesday, and needed a mental health day away from my computer on Wednesdays to recharge for Thursday and Friday. I wonder what it would have been like to notice this earlier and express it to my team—I really want to be able to show up at my best, and I notice that taking breaks on Wednesdays helps me maintain momentum. I think it would be best for me to be online later in the day on Wednesday for a shorter amount of time.
Especially if you’re in a position of leadership, this level of honesty can be a catalyst for more people listening to their bodies and giving themselves what they need to show up at their best. Here are some tips for people in management positions to set a tone of honesty around emotional well-being in the workplace.
#1: Acknowledge what’s happening. Express empathy by naming what we are moving through.
Get familiar with the signs of burnout. Instead of punishing people for their “decline in performance,” empathize with how much they might be carrying and how heavy this weight might be to hold. A reminder that we are entering year three of an absolute global catastrophe, still processing years one and two while trying to show up for the people we love and the projects we're committed to, while trying to feel our feelings while not letting them consume us too much, balancing intentional presence with indulgent distractions all while…just trying to make it through the day.
If you find yourself at a loss for words, here's a nonviolent communication tool that breaks down a process of 1. observing the facts 2. expressing your feelings 3. stating what you need, and 4. making a request.
I think we forget to name that none of what we are experiencing is okay. Showing up to work while we’re watching millions die from an airborne virus is not okay. Sometimes that simple acknowledgment helps ease the tension and helps people speak up when they’re reaching their capacity. Also, "you're doing great" goes a long way these days.
#2: Normalize weekly, recurring mental health check-ins and mental health breaks.
Normalize checking in with someone’s workload and mental bandwidth before assigning them another project. Normalize having a conversation with a client about pacing and scope; frame it as a way to infuse care and humanity into the process which will inevitably lead to better ideas and more sustainable results. Normalize mental health breaks. I’ve seen companies attempt a “no meeting Wednesday” rule or “no meetings after 5pm” rule. These rules would often be compromised when production schedules shifted and results became driven by a sense of urgency instead of a commitment to quality. Create a parameter that supports healthy periods of rest and stick to it, even when it gets hard.
The best teams I’ve witnessed in action are teams that care for each other. When one person has to address a personal need or just needs a break, another person who has the capacity steps in and helps carry the load.
Dispersing this care and labor allows us to think about collective needs, and pick up the weight in different areas at different times.
“The best teams I’ve witnessed in action are teams that care for each other. When one person has to address a personal need or just needs a break, another person who has the capacity steps in and helps carry the load. Dispersing this care and labor allows us to think about collective needs, and pick up the weight in different areas at different times.”
#3: Ask “what could be done differently here?”
What can we slow down in this process? What can we do to think more strategically about pacing? Where is the urgency coming from? Can we ask for more time? Can we reduce the deliverables?
Here, I also want to invite some reflection. Why did you get into what you’re doing now? Why do you keep doing it? What is the greater purpose? What are you working toward?
Having an idea of what your role is and what purpose you’re fulfilling helps root us in our “why.” It brings some meaning and momentum to our daily responsibilities. Sometimes on projects, we get swept up in addressing a single piece of feedback from a higher-up without realizing there’s an easier, simpler solution if we just provide a different perspective and direction.
Remember, urgency is a symptom of white supremacy. We can ask, where is this urgency coming from? Can we redirect this energy to think of a long-term strategy that helps contribute to a more holistic vision?
Any invitation to slow down, especially from someone in a position of assigned power/authority helps invite more thoughtfulness, more strategy, more innovation, healthier pacing, and better ideas overall.
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Jezz Chung (they/them) is a writer, facilitator, and performer based in the Lenape territory of New York City. They believe that personal transformation is a radical practice of collective change. To inquire about workshops designed around equity, creativity, and well-being, reach out at jezzchung.com
Illustration by WNW Member ShinYeon Moon